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Come on in, friend! Pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, and let's chat! I'd love to share what God's been putting on my heart about the topics of family, femininity, and faith, and you do the same. If you want to go deeper, join my Facebook group for "This Side of Heaven", and be sure to subscribe to keep up with every new post (no spam, I promise!). I look forward to getting to know you and sharing the journey "this side of Heaven!"

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Big Lilla Rose SALE!

8/27/2015

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I know I promised not to bombard my readers with Lilla Rose information, and I won't. But I do want to let you know about an incredible Lilla Rose sale that is going on today (Thursday) through Saturday (midnight, Pacific time). All of these are available on my Lilla Rose website: www.lillarose.biz/kristibothur.

Everything is on sale, some as much as 30% off, and not just Flexi Clips. Hairbands, hair sticks, badge holders, bobbies - everything!

Here are just some of the clips that are 30% off!

And here are some of the new styles!

If you are unsure about what size to get, this chart is helpful:

Hope to see some of you over there on my Lilla Rose website. Let me know if you have any questions!

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A full month, and a full heart

8/27/2015

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August is full of memories and "if only" for me.

Naomi would have turned six.

One year ago, we found out that we were expecting our little Hope Promise, only to lose her days later.

This month, had our Christmas surprise lived, would have been our due date.

But in spite of these hard dates, in spite of also missing our other two babes in Heaven, Jordan and Kyria, we keep going, and even keep hoping for another child, should God so bless us. Why and how? I share that this month on the Pregnancy After Loss Support blog (and no, we are not pregnant).

I hope you will join me there!

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Lilla Rose and God's love

8/19/2015

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Last month, I jumped into something new and decided to become an independent consultant for Lilla Rose, a company that makes unique and beautiful hair accessories.

Yes, I signed up to do direct sales, which in all my born days I never dreamed of ever doing for so many reasons. I hate selling things (just ask my elementary school teachers from when we did school fundraisers). I hate high pressure anything. I don't like feeling like I've been roped into something and making others feel that way, too. I am as anti-materialistic as they come, and convincing someone to pay for a nonessential rubs me the wrong way. I could go on.

But I signed up anyway. Why? Well, lots of initial reasons for that, too. For one, the company is pretty low pressure, allowing consultants to determine their own level of involvement, whether just signing up for the consultant discount or having an actual business on the side. The hair accessories themselves, especially their signature Flexi Clip, are truly beautiful and, best of all, they really work, even in my long but baby fine hair. So it is a product I believe in and can get excited about. And I'm excited about the possibility of using it to help with fundraisers for causes and groups I believe in, as well as bringing in some extra income for our family.

But there has been something more than that, something deeper, and as I've thought it through, I'm realizing that there is a common thread to this and the other activities I'm involved with. I want to share it with you.

The first time I saw a Lilla Rose Flexi Clip on a friend's website, I was impressed by its simple beauty and how it gave an otherwise common hairstyle an uncommon elegance. My daughter felt the same way, calling the one I tried on her a "princess clip." And I was struck by the awareness that something as simple as a hair clip could help a woman feel a little more put together, and carry her head just a little bit higher.

It made me think of something I've encountered both personally and through our Naomi's Circle ministry for parents who have experienced the loss of a baby in pregnancy or infancy. That something is the tendency for a woman who has been through a loss to have a hard time loving herself and her body. I dealt with that after losing Naomi - anger at my body for so utterly failing me and my daughter, and absolutely zero interest in doing anything for myself in those initial months of grief. I also struggled during those early months with sensing God's love for me, when I felt abandoned by Him.

I know this is not something unique to pregnancy loss. So many women struggle to see themselves as God does - as strong, beautiful, capable women with gifts that can change the world, if we will only give ourselves to Jesus and allow Him to change us and lead us. And I've begun to realize that most of the causes and groups I have been drawn to - Naomi's Circle, helping with our MOPS group, writing for the Columbia SC Moms Blog, leading women's Bible studies, even writing this blog - have at their foundation the desire to encourage women and point them toward the God who loves them, toward the Lord who died for them, toward the Holy Spirit who can transform them.

So back to my crazy decision to sell Lilla Rose products. :)

I think I am drawn to Lilla Rose in part because it is something tangible that not only helps me stand in a simple way against that blah feeling of apathy toward my looks, but also reminds me of God's love for me.

How? The Bible often describes God's tender love for His people in word pictures, one of which is that of a groom adorning his bride with ornaments and jewelry, including "a beautiful crown" on her head (Ezekiel 16:10-14). And while the Bible is clear that a woman's beauty should ultimately be not external, but from the "hidden person of the heart" (1 Peter 3:4), it is my prayer that through my Lilla Rose business, the women I meet will be encouraged to reflect on God's great love for them and their great value in His sight - love and value that is independent of their appearance or experiences, or even whether they respond to His love, but simply because God made us, and we are His.

I would sure appreciate your prayers as I go into this fall wearing my normal number of hats, plus one more now. Pray for me to balance my time and responsibilities well, without dropping the most important ones of loving on the the family God has entrusted to me. You'll hear more about Lilla Rose on these pages in the days to come. I promise not to focus on that, though, but to continue to point others to the God I serve, who loves us each with an everlasting love.

Do you struggle to believe in God's great love for you? Please feel free to comment below or to message me directly. I would count it a privilege to lift you up in prayer and to encourage you in any way I can.

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Big Lilla Rose SALE!

A full month, and a full heart

Lilla Rose and God's love

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